


Versipellis

by ab (avvvery)



Category: Mulder and Scully - Fandom, X-Files - Fandom, X-Phile
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, F/M, Punk Scully, The X-Files - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-05-07
Updated: 2015-11-28
Packaged: 2018-03-29 10:15:08
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 6,580
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3892588
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/avvvery/pseuds/ab
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>VERSIPELLIS, "One who changes their skin."</p><p>Mulder and Scully clash on Scully's first day on campus, but when strange murders begin supposedly at the hands of a cryptic creature, the two grow closer together.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Dana Scully dragged her things off the sidewalk and into the college dorms as so many other students have before her. The walls were thin and covered in a soft layer of grime. Of course she had expected this, why would a freshman get the better end of the dorm list? Her roommate was a dark skinned, dark haired, moody girl with piercings in her lip and above her eyes.  
  
In a swift movement her father had pushed her trunk through the doorway and to the foot of her new bed. Her mother began unfolding her sheets to make the bed.  
  
“Mom, I got it.” She said taking away the folded sheets with a smile. Dana didn’t want to make it any harder than she knew it was for her mother. Her father, a stout and bald man, was finding it easier to let his little girl go. After all who wouldn’t be proud of the obedient little Dana becoming a doctor? She was Starbuck and has been for as long as she could remember. This year Dana wished to break that cycle.  
  
Dana’s parents said their goodbyes. Her mother, Margaret sniffing and muttering dos and don'ts of a college student. Her father, Bill (Ahab to Dana) only beaming, muttering a soft, “See ya Starbuck,” before the door shut with a soft click. And just like that, they were gone. Freedom seemed more hers than ever.  
  
She sighed, brushing her long nails against her cheek. Her roommate was already on the phone in the other room talking incessantly. It took Dana maybe another hour of her time to sort away her clothing and personal items.  
  
The window was closed, sun seeping through the old cracks in the off white wood. There were no curtains, but if there was was, wind would have swept them up into the room. Dana pulled out the worn and creased list of college textbooks from her jean pocket, flipping over the cursive writing. She had paid in advance for each of her medical books, which cost a fortune and a half, so all she had to do was pick them up from the college store in her name.  
  
Dana ran a quick hand through her short red hair, the long mirror by the door assuring her she looked good enough to go out into the chilled sunny air settling around the campus. She shut the door behind her on her way down the hall.  
  
The graveled paths were loud and satisfyingly crunchy under Dana’s boots as she strode through the sea of freshmen such as herself. Hopefully the line forming at the bookstore wouldn’t be so long that she would miss valuable hours of settling in with her books.  
  
As Dana waited patiently with her arms crossed and knee bent, another student wandered around the newly dusted shelves of the bookstore as his idiot college friends passed around brightly colored flyers advertising tonight’s student mixer. They pushed and shoved, dropping flyers onto the old red carpet. One of them saw Dana, shoving the neon flyers into the hands of his moronic friends and walking towards the red headed girl wearing the dark sweater in line. He held out his hand, though she didn’t take it, and spoke in an even voice.  
  
“Fox, but everyone calls me Mulder.” He said, making no real effort towards Dana. She raised an eyebrow, seemingly about to laugh.  
  
“Your parents named you Fox?” Mulder chuckled, running a hand over his face as though the question was one he’d heard far too many times.  
  
“Traditionally you’re supposed to say your name. It’s considered friendly.” Mulder mused, eyes on Dana as she only regarded him with awe. Did he really think she’d fall for that?  
  
“Dana.” She answered, almost grudgingly, the line moving a step towards the book counter.  
  
“Scully, correct?” He asked her again, scratching at the sleeves of his t-shirt, small aliens throwing frisbees printed in the fabric. Dana was surprised, but Mulder ignored the look of confusion and went straight to the leather bag at his side. With one quick flip, he pulled a large, white spined medical book from his bag.  
  
“I believe this is yours.”  
  
“Aren’t they all the same?”  
  
“Not when you’ve paid in advance, they’ve already been checked out to you. I must have been handed yours by mistake. Psych and Anatomy books look similar to a careless eye.” Mulder explained, tossing his eyes down the line again.  
  
“Well uh, thank you.” Dana managed, brushing her red hair behind her ear, the slap and sound of books being passed out becoming quicker and Dana was checked out three more textbooks. As Dana looked back, Mulder had walked away, resuming his colorful flyer duty. Mulder honestly didn’t know what to think, his mind focused on that red hair of hers.


	2. Chapter 2

Dana had managed the windy walk back to her dorm building with four tightly bound medical books at her disposal, one she acquired from Mulder, the curiously smart student who hung around complete idiots. Dana stowed them away under her bed, then ventured back into the open space that served as a tiny living room and sat down at the couch.  
  
Her roommate, whom she now knew as Gina, had her ear to the phone again, holding one of those damning neon flyers she saw Fox holding. Dana almost laughed again as the sound of the name Fox rattled around in her head.  
  
Gina looked up, placing the phone in the crook of her neck and handed Dana the flyer.  
  
“You going tonight?” She inclined towards Dana, resuming her talk as Dana ran her eyes over the brightly colored paper:  
  
**MIXER  
** **HOSTED BY YOUR FRATERNITY BROTHERS  
** **KEGGER AND BYOB ****  
**  
Dana was a tad skeptical at going to something as silly as a party associated with a fraternity, but Dana had her freedom and the least she could do was have a little fun as Gina put. Even if was only just a little.  
  
Gina had been nice enough to show Dana where the mixer had started, though if she had just followed the scent of booze and sweat she would have found it herself.  
  
Immediately a plastic drink was pushed into her hand, smiling idiots chasing shadows around the frat house. Over excitable, giggly females followed suit of every male that passed by. Dana was overwhelmed by it all, and found more comfort in focusing on her drink than anyone else.  
  
It was probably after Dana was four drinks in that she began to wander, closed doors are mainly what she stayed away from. Dana must of gone up and down the same hallway more than once, for the same sliver of light kept hitting her across the face. It surprised her, though when stepping up to it, it was normal. A door, she pushed open with her hand.  
  
“Scully?” A voice from the corner startled Dana and when she turned she saw Mulder in the corner, sitting at a desk crammed into this tiny closet.  
  
“Fox.” Dana laughed, placing a hand against her throat where the small gold cross lay around her neck. Though not overly religious, it was a nervous habit of hers.  
  
“It’s Mulder, Scully, not even my parents call me Fox.” Mulder corrected her, the wide horn-rimmed glasses on his nose something Dana hadn’t expected. She looked around the cramped closet, her eyes falling on something, a rectangle of shiny paper, a blue sky above large pine trees. A ufo lay above it all and near the bottom, thick white letters spelled out ‘I Want To Believe’. She ran her hand over the tiny saucer, all the while Mulder only watching.  
  
“Do you believe in the existence of extraterrestrials?” Mulder pushed essays and gently used books away from the edge of the desk as Dana sat against it.  
  
He saw Dana laugh again, though her face fell a bit when she noticed the complete seriousness of his question. Mulder didn’t take offense, I mean they didn’t call him ‘Spooky’ for nothing.  
  
“Logically, I would have to say no." There was a short silence.  
  
"Mulder the very idea of even thinking something so far fetched could be a possibility is just astronomically improbable and a bit impractical don’t you think?” She was chuckling to herself, drunkenly from what Mulder could tell.  
  
“So you’re saying we’re alone, completely alone in such a vast space of the universe?”  
  
“I’m saying that I believe in science and this... this myth is nooooot,” Dana drew out the word ‘not’, as if her statement wasn’t clear, “scientifically proven.”  
  
Even as Dana spoke to him, Mulder saw past her drunk exterior. Despite her drunkenness, he saw the complete sanity in her every word. Is that normal with people you’ve just met, or was Mulder drunk himself? To make sure, he looked around but found nothing but the disheveled plastic cup Scully had brought in. She was beautiful, a sound mind of science and practicality. Dana Scully came off as a person who didn’t usually have her own fun, this party a definite change in her scenery. Mulder didn’t want to admit he wanted to see more of her in his own scenery, but his world of psychology and the unexplained was definitely on the other side of her scientific mind.  
  
“Hey Spooky, Skinman wants to know--” A tall, compactly built fraternity brother stopped in the doorway, seeing Scully sitting on the edge of Mulder’s desk.  
  
Mulder knew what he had come for.  
  
“Tell him, I’ll get it to him when I’m ready.” Mulder said, eyes focused on Scully, but he lingered. Mulder sighed, looking towards the door again, “Krycek, I told you I’ll get it to him when it’s done.” Mulder’s voice held force, surprising Dana. But who would have a name as ridiculous as Skinman?  
  
The man Mulder called Krycek left, giving a short nod before disappearing down the hall. Dana looked at Mulder, a question forming in her throat.  
  
“Krycek?”  
  
“A complete ass and a little too much for his own good.” Mulder chuckled, leaning back in his chair. He didn't want Dana to know that the only real reason he could stay in the frat house was by doing essays for some of the fraternity brothers. It was in fact, his protection. Being called Spooky did give people a reason to place a target on his back.  
  
Dana looked up, discovering a series of wooden pencils impaled in the ceiling tiles.  
  
“I see.” She said, pushing off the desk to stand on her own two feet, though swayed and tripped, slamming her hand against the wall. Mulder put out a hand to catch her, his thumb pressed in her side.  
  
“I think--I think I should uh…” Scully was rambling a bit under her breath as Mulder got to his feet, slipping under her arm to where it rested around his waist.  
  
“C’mon.” Mulder smiled, helping petite Scully down the hall and into the mass chaos.

Outside was dark, quiet chirping coming from the cracks in the stone walls lining the sidewalk in-between dorms. Scully had her small hand wrapped in Mulder’s collar, eyes half closed.  
  
“Mulder?”  
  
“Hm?”  
  
“Why do they call you Spooky?” Mulder shook his head, shifting Dana to keep her from falling flat onto the pavement.  
  
"People don't take kindly to me wanting to find the truth."  
  
"Truth about what, Fox?"  
  
"I'll let you know when I find it."  
  
In a split second, Mulder’s eyes picked up shapes, bursting from the bushes. Mulder immediately distinguished the shapes as Langly, Frohike, and Byers. Langly could be heard yelling, “Johnny Ramone lives!”, as well as Byers telling him it was the wrong time and place to be yelling about social justice. They changed course, towards Mulder and Dana, just as campus police arrived, waving flashlights across the street. They hid behind Dana and Mulder, though Mulder was only glad none of the officers noticed Dana’s current state.  
  
Richard “Ringo” Langly is tall and gangly, with long stringy blonde hair, thick glasses, and a plethora of Johnny Ramone Lives t-shirts. Melvin Frohike is stout and much shorter than his peers, with large glasses, and a leather jacket. The most mentally sound and quiet one of the group seemed to be John Fitzgerald Beyers who wore sweatervests and ties in July, even if it killed him.  
  
“Thanks for the cover, Fox.” Frohike grinned, eyeing Dana hanging on Mulder’s tall and lanky build.  
  
“No problem, work is never done for the Lone Gunmen.”  
  
“It’s going to ruin me.” Beyers complained, tugging at his tie under an itchy looking sweatervest.  
  
“I’d introduce you, but Scully seems to be a tad under the weather,” Dana almost protested, then thought better of it as a sudden head rush occurred and she faulted a tad in her steps.  
  
“Fine by me.” Frohike mused, adjusting the glasses sitting on his nose.  
  
“Mulder, what fun have you gotten yourself into this time?” Langly asked, squinting through thick black framed glasses. Dana was a bit taken back by the nerdity of them all, especially when they seemed to call themselves the ‘Lone Gunmen’. The group just came off as an activist group just waiting to get thrown in jail, not the moronic jocks Mulder was with earlier.  
  
“I could ask you the same question.”


	3. Chapter 3

Dana woke with a splitting headache, something she could only recognize as a hangover. She groaned, finding herself in her dorm room. The light was a bit much coming from the window, causing a little pain behind Dana’s eyes.  
  
She squinted as she scooted to the edge of the bed and put her feet down on the badly installed laminated floor. It creaked under her weight, her hair in a complete state of red disarray as she wandered down the hall to the door. It didn’t look like Gina had come back to the dorm at all since last night.  
  
The lock had been broken, bent inward, as if it had been kicked open with such force it snapped. A badly written note was stuck inside the door clearly signed by Fox saying he’d find a way to fix the door since it had been locked when he’d taken Dana home last night.  
  
Dana could not help but smile, after all she felt happy about the events that occurred last night, even if she could only remember bits and pieces.  
  
The water was hot as Dana stepped in the shower, rubbing her temples to somehow lessen the deafening roar in her head. She stayed still under the water, running over her shoulders like a river over rocks.  
  
After only ten minutes, the water went cold, shocking Dana in a way she did not like. Quickly she ripped a towel off the wall and shut off the icy water, causing puddles on the tile as she stepped out.  
  
Dana knew exactly what she needed and trudged back into the dorm’s bedroom, rifling through her duffel bag for the temporary problem solver she so badly wanted.  
  
Finally the corner of a Morley cigarette carton caught her eye and she dug her small hand around the carton, pulling it free of the pocket she’d hidden it in. Dana didn’t usually have a wild streak but in the short span of time Dana’s been here on her own she’s begun to develop one. It seemed silly since she’d only been left alone a day, yet every time she’d heard the name Scully leave Mulder’s mouth, she felt as if Scully was another person. As if Scully was an alter ego she desperately was trying to become and it was only a matter of time before it consumed her.  
  
Dana searched for the lighter she’d also stowed away in the lining of her duffel, flicking it into a spark frenzy until a constant flame flickered above the metal in her hand. She lit her cigarette, breathing in herself, and breathing out the last bit of Dana that remained. She rested an elbow against her arm, holding her cigarette near her lips as she looked towards the window. Long, thin, dissipating streams of smoke drifted around her face as the realization came to her that Dana was no more.  
  
Scully decided she wanted to take a walk on the wild side, with or without a certain person named Fox.  
  
Her mind drifted a bit, wondering what her father would think of her now. Ahab finding his little Starbuck smoking cigarettes, despite that she was in fact of age. Ahab’s little Starbuck seemed to be fading from view, only present in Dana’s pre med studies.  
  
Scully ruffled her hair, checking the weather to feel the slight chill in the air. Then she slid through the small amount of clothing she had hanging in her closet, going with a long sleeve v-neck and her leather jacket to keep out the cold. It was hard to see Scully in anything but neutral colors. She didn’t have a another class until 2:00, but she still decided on going out, maybe to brush up on her science at the library.  
  
As she headed for the door she was met with a slight hesitation, Scully grabbed the cigarette carton off the bed and stuffed it into her jacket pocket. Wouldn’t hurt to be prepared, she thought to herself as she nudged the broken door closed.

“I’m only saying Mulder,” Beyers chimed, clicking away at his laptop with Langly and Frohike at his shoulder.  
  
“And I’m only going to say this one more time, I do not gaze as Scully.” Mulder protested, defending himself (poorly) against something that all the Lone Gunmen agreed on.  
  
“You are planning on fixing her door right?” Langly asked, pushing his glasses further up on the bridge of his nose.  
  
“I don’t know, probably.” Mulder waved him off, like batting at incessant, gossiping flies. Beyers would only regard Mulder with a look of disbelief.  
  
“Well if you don’t ask her out soon, Frohike might.” Langly thrust another jab into Fox’s ego, just as Scully was seen walking into the library by Frohike.  
  
It still amazed Mulder how stunning she seemed to him after only a day of knowing each other. She was wearing a tight skirt, showing off her petite legs. Scully was a walking entity, terrifying in her boots, but completely adorable in the green sweater she wore, the neckline just low enough.  
  
"He's drooling.” Langly snickered and Mulder snapped back to the Lone Gunmen, a pack of tedious losers who served as his best friends.  
  
“Am not.”  
  
“Oh look, here she comes.” Scully was making her way around every other student doing their work at each of the three tables between Scully, Mulder, and the Lone Gunmen.  
  
“Fox.” Scully nodded in greeting, the look on her face showing that she only vaguely recognized the Lone Gunmen, but still remembered meeting them. Scully had to contain a laugh as she noticed Mulder’s t-shirt with little green men around a campfire.  
  
“Mulder.”  
  
“Right, Mulder. Can I talk to you?”  
  
“Sure, shoot.” Mulder did not move, though Scully waited before speaking, eyeing the Lone Gunmen a bit nervously. Scully didn’t understand why she was so nervous around them all, she was never nervous.  
  
“Um, in private. If you don’t mind.” Scully bit at her lip, waiting a moment before following Mulder to talk behind a set of bookcases a little further down from where the Lone Gunmen were sitting.  
  
“What’s the matter? Is everything okay?” Mulder asked, Scully exhibiting a slight pace, her hand going to her jacket, pulling out a cigarette. She patted her pockets, the unlit cigarette between her teeth.  
  
“Do you have a light?” Scully asked, making a flicking motion with her thumb but Mulder only shook his head,  
  
Scully sighed, a look of defeat as she looked at Mulder again. They were silent, though Scully already knew what she had wanted to ask him. Just nerves, it’s just silly nerves, Scully thought.  
  
Mulder’s eyes were on Scully and her green sweater, the dark color making her hair look more fiery than usual.  
  
She chuckled, running a hand through her hair, as if she was laughing at herself. She looked frazzled, and it was a completely new thing to her.  
  
“Uh, I don’t really remember much of last night.” Scully finally confessed, the unlit cigarette on her lip now just a comfort rather than a need.  
  
“It wasn’t that interesting really.”  
  
“I remember you broke my door.” Scully laughed, sounding like wind chimes to Mulder. He cringed a little at the thought of trying to replace the door, he hardly had any money as is. Wasn’t that the College’s job anyway?  
  
“You didn’t have your key and I couldn’t just leave you looking like a bad celebrity locked out of their house.”  
  
“Well, thank you. I appreciate that, I guess.” Scully looked down nervously again. A wonderful impression she must have made.  
  
“Do you remember what I asked you?”  
  
“If I believed in aliens?”  
  
“Yeah, and?”  
  
“Mulder, I have the same answer. I believe in a lot of things but little green men is not one of them.”  
  
“Gray.” Mulder corrected.  
  
“I’m sorry?”  
  
“You said green men, but statistically many eye witnesses have reported gray skinned beings with large eyes and small mouths. None, in fact, have reported little green men.”  
  
Scully was silent, a bit taken back by the sudden extraterrestrial description break down. Mulder shifted on his feet, a little uncomfortable with himself.  
  
“Are you okay Scully?” Mulder asked her, stepping closer and bending his head to speak directly to her. She sucked in her lip, a bit confused by the question, but nodded anyway.  
  
“Yeah, I think I’m okay.” Scully whispered and looked up to meet Mulder’s gaze. He placed his hand against her cheek, a long silence following before Scully placed her hand over his.  
  
“Mulder? Mulder? Well where’d the hell he go?” Frohike hollered, causing Scully and Mulder to break apart quickly,  
  
“Sh, Frohike we’re in a library for god sake,” Langly chastised, but Scully was already gone down the row of books.


	4. Chapter 4

Mulder didn't think he could do anything more than pay for Scully's broken door, but he wasn't going to pass the opportunity to stop by again. As he passed by bland, identical doors he found Scully's, walking directly in. There was no lock anyway. He saw scully sitting on her horribly plaid couch, asleep with her books out and the TV on mute to a black and white movie.  
  
Mulder moved quietly, leaning down near Scully, her mouth slightly open.  
  
"Boo." He said, not quite that loud, but Scully heard it. Her eyes flew open as she inhaled sharply.  
  
"Fox!" She complained, blinking and running a hand through her hair.  
  
"You know you should really fix that door, anyone can just walk in." Mulder mused, smirking while he wandered over to the kitchenette.  
  
"Who's fault is that?" Scully muttered, blinking at a page in her textbook. Mulder had gotten into Scully's veggie chips, munching away.  
  
"What the hell are these? They taste like ass." He complained, flipping the bag around.  
  
"They're supposed to be barbecue." Scully corrected him, plucking the bag from him and putting it back where it belonged.  
  
"Mulder, did you come here to fix my door or what? It's late."  
  
"Well no, that's a locksmith's job. I'm not a locksmith."  
  
"Then why are you here?" Scully rolled her eyes as Mulder leaned in again.  
  
"Can't a buddy see his pal?"  
  
"Mulder your breath smells like barbecue."  
  
"Wanna test that theory, Scully?" Mulder closed his eyes and puckered his lips, but Scully scoffed and walked away. Mulder held in a laugh.  
  
"I'll ask the college about the door tomorrow."  
  
"Okay, Mulder." Scully sat down at the couch again, unmuting her television as a television scream ripped through the air.  
  
"What are you watching?" Mulder asked, moving again to sit beside her with a resounding and uninvited plop.  
  
"Oh I don't know, something." Scully shrugged, truly not knowing what she was watching. It was a free college film channel so, obviously, it was not very good.  
  
"How specific of you." Mulder smirked, leaning over to inspect one of her glossy looking textbooks before another scream pierced the dark night air outside. They as a pair tensed, noticing this one had not come from Scully's television.  
  
Mulder was the first to race out the door, followed by Scully with a kitchenette knife that served as her best weapon.  
  
A college girl, Scully recognized as Rita from down the hall, lay on the lawn. She was bleeding profusely from long scratches and claw marks across her skin, her throat torn out as Rita gasped for breath.  
  
Scully saw another figure running almost inhumanly across the lawn.  
  
"Oh god." Mulder whispered, too low for Scully.  
  
"What?"  
  
“Go!" Mulder tried to explain, pointing to the unfinished attacker. Scully shook her head, taking off to chase the figure across the lawn. When she hit a patch of trees, she had lost the trail. Slowly, Scully inched around the foliage, searching for a possible hiding place, until suddenly Scully was shoved from behind. She hit the ground hard, hitting her head as she felt the crushing weight of her attacker. She tried screaming, but she was met with large, quite disturbing eyes and what appeared to be fangs.  
  
"Wolf! Wolf!" She cried, terrified and completely out of her territory. What the hell do I do? Scully panicked, jabbing the small kitchenette knife into the "animal" as it squeaked and scampered off loudly. But it ran upright, and on two legs. Scully shook, heaving as she curled up for a moment to find her composure. Mulder came running, telling her he called 911 for Rita, but she was gone. There wasn't much they could do, and Mulder assured her it had already been too late. Scully still felt pretty damn guilty though, despite the circumstance.  
  
"Mulder it was a wolf. I know what I saw."  
  
"Yes, but it also ran like a man." Mulder pointed out, knowing full well Scully had seen what he had. They were back in Scully's dorm, trying to make sense of the attack, even after Scully had told the police it had only been a wolf. How could it have not been a wolf?  
  
"Yes well, Scully until that door of yours is fixed I'm staying here."  
  
"You’re what?" Scully raised an eyebrow, knowing that despite Gina still hasn't been back to the dorm (after two days), she still didn't want Mulder hanging around to give anyone the wrong idea.  
  
There was a rather unnecessary knock at the door, the door swinging open slowly. Mulder needed to fix Scully's damn door.  
  
"Are you Dana Scully?" Asked the police officer at the door.  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"We need you to identify a body."


	5. Chapter 5

Mulder had driven Scully to the County Station and now she stood in the morgue. The body lay cold and dead on a steel table. Scully was a bit mortified, but hadn't had nearly enough contact with the girl to fully mourn her. 

Gina's throat had been ripped out, stained blood running along her blue, veined skin. 

"Yes, that's Gina." Scully nodded, then asked if she could leave. 

She didn't realize she had been rushing until she yanked open the door to Mulder's car and slammed it shut. 

"That was quick." Mulder said, surprised as he let the engine idle. 

"It was Gina."

"Who?"

"I didn't know her really... but her throat was ripped out. She was my roommate."

"Oh."

There was a long silence, Mulder trying to find what little condolence he could, and Scully was just blank. 

"Well that settles it," Mulder said, placing the car into reverse. 

"What?"

"I can no longer in good conscious leave you alone in that dorm."

"Mulder." Dana began to protest the situation, knowing full well what Mulder was suggesting. Although Scully would never admit it, she was glad Mulder was concerned. She'd rather not be alone. 

"Scully, I currently reside in a closet. Give me a little freedom. All I'm trying to do is keep you safe." Mulder sped down the highway, a little agitated at the new and somewhat unknown threat around Scully. He had a suspicion, something Scully wouldn't except without proof. Scully just sighed, shaking her head, "Fine, but you get the couch."

"I do love me some plaid," Mulder joked, looking over a Scully with a smile. 

Mulder pulled into a parking space outside Scully's dorm building after stopping by Mulder's frat house. They climbed the stairs together, Mulder cracking jokes to somehow amuse Scully out of the ditch her mood had driven into. The dorm seemed weird with Gina's things still lying around. She was dead, and Scully was trying to wrap her head around it. Especially around what killled her. Mulder settled on the couch, turning on the TV again. A different, in color movie was playing and Scully went into her room to get ready for bed.

Scully was never usually phased by the dead, remembering the funeral of one of her aunts, though the remains of Gina's life left behind in the bedroom was a tad unnerving. Scully rolled over on her side, thinking that maybe leaving the couch to Mulder had been a mistake on her part. At least until Gina’s family came to clean out her things. She sighed, throwing back the covers and stepping onto the creaky wooden floor. Scully walked into the small living room where Mulder was snoring lightly on the couch. Scully sat on the end cushion with little space between herself and Mulder.

“Fox.” She whispered, leaning in towards Mulder, who stirred and blinked slowly. He seemed to inhale sharply, moving the arm that lay over his eyes.

“What happened? What’s wrong?” Mulder propped himself up on one elbow, rubbing his face. Scully placed her hand against his chest, pushing him back against the couch.

“It’s okay, nothing happened.” She said again, looking towards the flickering TV. An Indie film made by the universities film students played softly on the screen and Scully felt Mulder relax a little under her hand. Scully resigned herself back to the small corner of the couch, pulling her knees into her chest as she laid against the ugly, plaid arm.

Scully didn’t remember falling asleep, but she had, and the light in the room made her squint and blink. She was still curled up in the tiny corner of the couch, Mulder no longer next to her. Scully yawned, hearing repeated banging on the door. She was confused, the doorknob jiggling a bit as she got up to inspect the noise. Suddenly, Mulder popped in, sliding through the door frame and the door holding a white paper bag and white paper cups.

"I got breakfast." Mulder chimed, handing her a cup of warm coffee, the stream coming up through her small fingers. 

"Is that the..?" Scully trailed off, leaning her head toward the sound of knocking and jiggling. 

"Locksmith? Yeah." Mulder sipped his coffee, smacking his lips satisfyingly. He apparently had showered, whether he did it here or back in his dorm it didn't matter. His aftershave smelled vaguely of peppermint, but his breath smelled like coffee and sunflower seeds. He wore the same shirt, slightly wrinkled. That was when Scully came the conclusion he must have just used her bathroom. 

"I thought you'd jump for joy when I got the locksmith down here, now I see that's not the case." Mulder frowned, setting his cup down on the kitchenette counter.

“What’s wrong?” He asked, but Scully only shook her head, burying her nose in her coffee to avoid a real answer. Mulder knew it was probably the discomfort from the fact that her roommate had been murdered by someone, or rather as Mulder thought, something. 

“I talked to the police about Gina. Her throat was slashed like the girl down the hall.” Mulder continued and Scully swallowed, angry with Mulder for some reason. Why did he talk like that? So detached?

“Yes I know Mulder.” Scully snapped, walking to the bathroom across the creaky floor and shutting the door behind her. She turned on the water, hearing his footsteps by the door. She wanted to tell him to leave, to just go away, but she decided to drown the unreasonable anger in the brief hot water.

Scully grabbed a pair of jeans and a t-shirt from her poorly made closet and changed behind a closed door. Mulder was still waiting in the kitchen, drinking the last of his coffee, pretending not to see Scully’s irritated look. 

“I’m going to speak to the Janitor today, apparently he’s a witness.” Mulder began, though Scully wasn’t entirely into the idea. 

“Mulder, let the police handle it. That’s their job.” She mumbled, running a hand through her damp red hair. She was incredibly annoyed and was itching to have a cigarette. Mulder, as always, was still quite relentless.


	6. Chapter 6

It was dark now, Mulder and Scully sitting in Mulder’s parked car next to the sidewalk. He had insisted on waiting out on the grounds for anything suspicious, since some people had reported seeing Rita running across the school grounds before being attacked. Scully was hungry and thirsty considering they have been sitting in the car for over an hour. Also, she wasn’t really dressed the part. Mulder found the way she dressed now incredibly hot, considering she frequented black, thick boots, and colorful knit hats.

“Mulder come on. I’m starving.” Scully sighed, twisting in her seat as her seat belt sprang up with a snap. It was unnecessary technically, they weren’t even moving. Mulder didn’t say anything, just smiled with only the corner of his mouth. Scully scooted over, poking his shoulder.

“You’ve been awfully quiet Fox.” She whispered again, brushing her red hair behind her ear.

“I didn’t think stakeouts required much talking Dana.” Mulder mused, tapping his thumb on the steering wheel rhythmically. Scully was bored, trying to engage in some form of small talk to somehow entertain herself.

“Are you really so positive we’ll find something?” She asked him, sucking in her bottom lip. Mulder looked towards her, the corners of his mouth turned upward. 

“Doesn’t it matter to you? I mean your roommate is dead.” Scully looked down, not wishing to remember Gina. Her family was supposed to arrive tomorrow to collect her things and strip her room bare, and then Scully would be alone. She didn’t like being alone.

“I don’t know Mulder. I just wish we could put it behind us.” She shrugged, looking up at him.

“If we quit now, they win.” Mulder said firmly, his eyes on Scully who was sitting closer to him than he could bare. They were supposed to be watching the grounds, but she was weary and Fox admittedly did not enjoy when she was weary. His focus was turned towards her, not the grounds anymore, as if her lack of interest had become his own. 

“I know.” Scully murmured, placing her small hand against his neck, her thumb against his jaw. As if starting a car, there was a spark and Fox felt he was going crazy. Scully leaned into Mulder, kissing him full on. It was incredible really, like setting a forest fire. Or at least, that’s how Scully saw it. The response was fast, Scully moving her legs to either side of Mulder in the driver’s seat as he placed his hands on her waist. They were kissing, Scully pressed against him in the seat, breathing heavily. 

“Fox.” She started, trying to breathe as her jacket was pulled off her shoulders, then following her t-shirt. Mulder pressed his face to Scully’s chest kissing up against her collarbone, then moving his lips against her throat. 

“Don’t. Speak.” Mulder huffed, working the button on her pants as Scully flung his shirt into the backseat. The rest of the clothing hit the back seat, Scully trying to get her jeans mostly off her hips. Mulder had his fingers on the hooks of Scully’s bra, all black lace and ribbon. It was funny, since Mulder never saw Scully as a ribbons kind of woman, but that didn’t quite matter right now as they were discarded throughout his car. The air was filled with loud sounds and heavy breathing and complete and utter infatuation. Mulder pushed into Scully, her face pressed in his neck, her mouth hardly closed. It was all she could do to breathe. Them going unnoticed. Scully had her hands on Mulder’s chest, the fast inhaling and exhaling quite comforting to them both. Mulder groaned placing his mouth against her flushed skin, and Scully bit down on her tongue by accident and then it was over. They’d made a hot mess of everything and stopped to catch their breath. Mulder placed his arms around Scully, kissing her ear as she winced at her bitten tongue. Mulder searched for his pants, or even Scully’s, but she wanted to just sit.

“Don’t move. I like it here.” She told him and Fox was beaming, their foreheads pressed together. A distant car door slammed. The windows were fogged and Mulder tensed at not being able to see someone beyond his car windows. A tap came from the car door, both Mulder and Scully muttering curses as they scrambled for their clothes and then Mulder swiped a hand over the window. The Campus Police had decided to treat the sex having pair to its very own booty call. The officer looked smug and a bit perverted (Scully thought) as he slammed his identification to the car window. Mulder and Scully weren’t embarrassed really, after all it was only Campus Police, but they would much rather not have to answer to the authority of Officer Peeping Tom.

Mulder and Scully were haphazardly dressed and standing on the sidewalk, Officer Tom chastising them both for breaking curfew. Mulder only calmly responded they were searching for werewolves and Scully nearly kicked him.

“Have you been partaking in any illegal activities involving marijuana, Mr. Mulder?” 

“No. Have you?” Silence.

“Sir, I think you’re going to have to come with us.”

“You can’t be serious?”

“Mulder.” Scully cut in, the fatigue getting to her as she resisted the urge to rub her eyes. She found the idea of being in her dorm room very appealing.

“Scully, come on.” Mulder crossed his arms over his chest and turning towards her. Scully rolled her eyes and asked Officer Tom if she could go home now, or the best “home” she actually had. Another round of criticism started before Scully was able to drag Mulder’s childish ass back into his car and take herself home.

“How come you get to drive?” Mulder complained and Scully only scoffed, shutting off the car as she reached her dorm building.

“Because you failed to make the first move.” She smirked, her eyes on the street. Mulder was surprised and a little insulted as he fell silent. 

“I guess you don’t need me inside anymore now do you?” He said, arms crossed. Scully raised an eyebrow.

“Technically, no. You did call the locksmith.” Scully smiled, opening the car door and stepping out. Mulder didn’t move until Scully walked to his side of the car and peered through the car window.

“You coming?” She asked, a devilish grin hidden from Mulder as she ran up the stairs to her dorm room, him following quickly at her heels.


End file.
